President Obama’s green energy initiative, coupled with the precipitous rise in gas prices, has led to a spike in grease thefts.
The Wall Street Journal reports:
There has been a black market for some time for stolen cooking oil, which renderers collect from restaurants and turn into animal feeds and other products. But its use in biodiesel has increased thefts.
At first, it was people pinching it to use in their own converted diesel vehicles. Police in Avondale, Ariz., arrested a Los Angeles punk band named Off! last year for grabbing grease from a barbecue place for their biodiesel tour bus. Police dropped charges, but Off! guitarist Dimitri Coats says the band now makes sure it asks restaurants before obtaining grease.
As used-oil prices doubled in recent years, to more than 40 cents a pound, organized grease-poaching rings struck.